Well. It happened. I'm old! Beloved .270 will neeed adjustment and I am breaking out the 30-30.

[Tight Lines]

"Brush gun" bullets deflect too and it's been proven time and time again.

Which rounds have you seen not expand at close range?

The old lever action rifles are called "brush guns" because they are easy to maneuver in the brush relative to a longer bolt action...bullets behave the way bullets behave...physics is physics...

We kill deer every year with a 62 grain 5.56. If that .270 didn't take it down, it wasn't the caliber nor the velocity...

OP hope you find the deer, and good luck with the scope for the 30-30 if you go that route...a good gunsmith can drill and tap a side mount scope mount for it...Dad had one like that...

I use 140 grain Hornady in my .270...devastating round...

 

[BriarPatch99]

These bullets are screaming so fast and the 130 grain just doesn't expand up close.

Not true at all ...totally false ....

The 30 30 always leaves a hole and it also has some shock upon impact

Also not always true ...the exit part ... and most every expanding bullet has some shock ...especially bullets designed for deer ...

 

[BriarPatch99]

and has knock down.

Another one of those false and misunderstood "things" that are passed around as fact .... It just isn't so ....

 

[Jim Boyd]

Sorry about the deer.

I hope everyone here knows that a deer is a lightly skinned animal with a light musculature and is not big boned.

They are very easily killed.

Any decently constructed bullet over about 60 grains that is traveling at decent speed and is properly placed will result in a dead deer.

Every time.

I personally will not use anything smaller than 24 caliber but many many deer fall to 223 each year.


Personally, again, I think it is the man and the gun and not the deer. They just ain’t that tough… we routinely kill them with stick and string.


No insult intended to anyone with varying opinions.

 

[godogs57]

Go to the Game Warden and have him approach the neighbors. They would probably allow him to go in and search for your deer. I’ve seen that angle of attack solve the issue many times.

 

[Glynr]

I am not a 270 fan but there is no way I would put a 270 down and pick up a 30 30.

 

[Browning Slayer]

It doesn't matter which gun you shoot unless you are shooting a MAGNUM if you can't hit where you need to. Sounds like a shooter problem and not a gun problem. If you can't see where you need to, try a cannon.

 

[Professor]

And heavy bullets hit harder than light ones. I have shot a traincarload of deer over the years with all kinds of weapons. I have absolutely no use for light, fast bullets nowadays. I go by results I can see, not charts on paper. According to paper, a .222 Swift ought to be a better hunting round than a .45/70.

9.3x62 for me. The medium bores lost out to all the hydro shock marketing, but bigger and slower bullets are better on deer sized game inside 200 yards. They knock them on the ground and damage less meat.

 

[godogs57]

Sorry about the deer.

I hope everyone here knows that a deer is a lightly skinned animal with a light musculature and is not big boned.

They are very easily killed.

Any decently constructed bullet over about 60 grains that is traveling at decent speed and is properly placed will result in a dead deer.

Every time.

I personally will not use anything smaller than 24 caliber but many many deer fall to 223 each year.


Personally, again, I think it is the man and the gun and not the deer. They just ain’t that tough… we routinely kill them with stick and string.


No insult intended to anyone with varying opinions.

Truth has been spoken.

I love the folks that degrade the 270 as being problematic. Truth be told it will absolutely murder any deer that’s ever lived on this planet with foot pounds of energy to spare. Truth is, you bust that oil pump, it’s going down. End of story. If you lost a deer with a 270, go look in the mirror to issue the blame.

Same story out west with my elk hunts except change the narrative to 7mm Mag. Every place I’ve hunted, 7mag stories abound. Someone, somewhere, has lost an elk to a 7 mag…..same outcome….you lose an elk to a 7mag…. march straight into the bathroom and look in the mirror.

Per your remarks, bear are constructed the same way. Skeletal structure considered, they are not that hard to kill. But, in that case you use enough gun to ensure they don’t get to you before they die!

 

[Jim Boyd]

Truth has been spoken.

I love the folks that degrade the 270 as being problematic. Truth be told it will absolutely murder any deer that’s ever lived on this planet with foot pounds of energy to spare. Truth is, you bust that oil pump, it’s going down. End of story. If you lost a deer with a 270, go look in the mirror to issue the blame.

Same story out west with my elk hunts except change the narrative to 7mm Mag. Every place I’ve hunted, 7mag stories abound. Someone, somewhere, has lost an elk to a 7 mag…..same outcome….you lose an elk to a 7mag…. march straight into the bathroom and look in the mirror.

Per your remarks, bear are constructed the same way. Skeletal structure considered, they are not that hard to kill. But, in that case you use enough gun to ensure they don’t get to you before they die!

I am a short action guy and do not know the 270 and 7 Mag well but both are probably sending 120-150 grain bullets downrange at about 3000 fps.

That is lethal on anything in North America, I would guess.

I am not stupid enough (I did not say I was not stupid at all….) to say I have never screwed up a shot, I have done it too many times. From 1980’s bows that arched an arrow like a rainbow all the way to .308, I have shot and lost deer.

In no incident did I think it was the weapon.

Best of luck to all of us that are fortunate enough to enjoy God’s bounty.

 

[Philnlucky]

In case youre interested, Skinner Sights makes aperture sights for Win 94 rifles. I have them on my 1895 Marlin 45/70. I find them much easier for those of us with aging eyes.

Http:/skinnersights.com.

 

[Bigmonk96]

I love my 270 and 270WSM - have killed deer with both using 130gr, 140gr,&150gr. -- well inside 100 yds. - at 73 years old,I can't see em' much beyond 100 yds. so all my shots are close. I shoot for the neck and they drop ( no chasing or hunting blood trails ) - I spend plenty of time on the range,year round,shooting my rifles and fill like if I can cover up a 1 to 2 inch bulls-eye at 50yds -100yds consistently, I should be able to hit a deers neck which normally is 5 inches or so,within my 100 yd. range.

Old age eyesight is really more noticeable in the deer woods* than we all want to admit -- I wish I was able to get my Ol 30-30 Winchester back out,but a scope is a must for me at my age.

Like Jim Boyd said ( deer are easy to kill,if we do our part ) I really like hunting with my 25-06 and 117gr, Hornady Superformance SST --they kill just as easy as my other rifles and the deer never complain

Good luck with finding your deer and good luck with the Ol 30-30 Winchester if you decide to take it hunting - those rifles have dropped a many whitetail and still will***

 

[longrangedog]

Years ago I had a farm where soybeans or cotton was planted every year. Deer would eat nearly every young and tender plant on the field edges costing thousands of dollars in lost production every year. I got a permit to reduce the population that allowed me to shoot does out of season at night using a spotlight. I shot them with a .223 using 60 grain soft point bullets. My helper and I recovered every deer and donated them to friends who loved to eat them. Out of an estimated total of three dozen deer taken over a period of several years, not a single animal was lost. The .223 performed perfectly in this case. Most were lung shots and the deer would go less that 75 yards. The bullet would frequently be found just under the skin on the opposite side or it would exit the deer.

 

[livinoutdoors]

Years ago I had a farm where soybeans or cotton was planted every year. Deer would eat nearly every young and tender plant on the field edges costing thousands of dollars in lost production every year. I got a permit to reduce the population that allowed me to shoot does out of season at night using a spotlight. I shot them with a .223 using 60 grain soft point bullets. My helper and I recovered every deer and donated them to friends who loved to eat them. Out of an estimated total of three dozen deer taken over a period of several years, not a single animal was lost. The .223 performed perfectly in this case. Most were lung shots and the deer would go less that 75 yards. The bullet would frequently be found just under the skin on the opposite side or it would exit the deer.

Yep, along those same lines i shot a feral hog on a wma last year. Good size boar with thick plates on his sides. 22lr right through the lungs n got stuck in the opposite side. You pop the lungs they will die.

 

[Jim Boyd]

Years ago I had a farm where soybeans or cotton was planted every year. Deer would eat nearly every young and tender plant on the field edges costing thousands of dollars in lost production every year. I got a permit to reduce the population that allowed me to shoot does out of season at night using a spotlight. I shot them with a .223 using 60 grain soft point bullets. My helper and I recovered every deer and donated them to friends who loved to eat them. Out of an estimated total of three dozen deer taken over a period of several years, not a single animal was lost. The .223 performed perfectly in this case. Most were lung shots and the deer would go less that 75 yards. The bullet would frequently be found just under the skin on the opposite side or it would exit the deer.

While the 60 grain 223 is never gonna be my fave, it will def kill deer all day long.

24 cal bullet that is decently constructed and running 2000 fps or better will get it done in nearly EVERY case and willl likely create a good blood trail.

We hunters are the ones that screw it up with rushed shots, wrong angles, poor marksmanship, rushed tracking jobs etc.

Put the bullet (or arrow) in the right spot, trust the process and be patient.

 

[Gator89]

270 does not play.

 

[rattlesnake1]

270 does not play.

is that the entrance or exit?

 

[Gator89]

is that the entrance or exit?

Entrance 75 yards from 14 foot ladder stand.

 

[furtaker]

Entrance 75 yards from 14 foot ladder stand.

Looks like that bullet hit something before it hit the deer.

 

[Gator89]

Looks like that bullet hit something before it hit the deer.

Quartering away.